Quiet Places Near Paso Robles

Quiet Places Help Me Stay Sane in the Midst of Stress

One thing I really appreciate about living in Paso Robles and Templeton is the number of quiet places one can find close to home when one needs a short retreat from stress or noise. If neighborhood power machinery gets to me, I can hop in the car and be somewhere quiet in five or ten minutes. That was not the case when I lived in southern California. Here are some of my quiet places to destress near my homes in Templeton and Paso Robles.

Quiet Meadow Across from Industrial Park on Linne Road in February before Rain, © B. Radisavljevic

Paso Robles Quiet Escapes

The River Walk

I have written extensively about the Salinas River Trail and Larry Moore Park elsewhere on this blog and on HubPages. Check out My Search for the River and How It Found Me and Short Walk to the River to get a feel for how secluded the park and riverbed can be on weekdays. The park is busier on weekends, and our peace may not last too much longer after the city builds new ballfields and parking lots there. For now, though, it's a short walk from home when the gardener comes with his power machinery.

Tree Hanging over bed of Salinas River, Larry Moore Park, © B. Radisavljevic

Oak Lane

I can also take a ten-minute walk to Oak Lane, a road with small farms just outside the city limits. There I can see a variety of farm animals and huge oak trees on this quiet country back road that ends beside the river.

A Large Oak Tree on Oak Lane in Paso Robles, © B. Radisavljevic

Vineyards

When I'm in Templeton, there are too many quiet country roads to even list here. My favorite quiet places when I walk in the late afternoon or early evening just at dusk are the vineyards. I prefer those that don't have gates to lock me out when the tasting rooms close.  One of my favorites is Peachy Canyon Tasting Room. The grounds are beautiful and also quiet after the tourist have left for the day.

This is one of my favorite spots there. I love the oaks, in which the squirrels often play.

Peachy Canyon Gazebo Behind Tasting Room,  © B. Radisavljevic

After finishing a visit to the grounds of Peachy Canyon's Tasting Room, it's often about time for the sun to set. If there are a lot of clouds to make that sunset interesting, I usually head a bit farther south on Bethel Road and park by the windmill at Castoro Cellars. The entrance gate is usually closed by then, but Bethel Road is peaceful and sunsets are beautiful there. Here is one of them.

Golden Sunset with Castoro Cellars Windmill, © B. Radisavljevic

Another peaceful place to walk is actually quite close to the 101 Freeway, just west of South Vine -- Twelve Oaks Drive. The first thing you see there is Doce Robles Winery. It has one of the best views of the sky from any direction. The vineyards are quiet and the views are scenic. Sometimes I get no farther than the vineyards, but sometimes I walk quite a way south on Twelve Oaks Drive, which is a dirt road that leads past other vineyards and small farms.

Oak Tree Beside Doce Robles Vineyard, © B. Radisavljevic

I put one of my favorite shots of the Castoro Cellars Windmill on these two Zazzle products.

 Windmill at Castoro Cellars Vineyard Wine Bag Windmill in Castoro Vineyard at Sunset Throw Pillow

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This is my seventeenth post for the 2016 AtoZchallenge, a Blogging Challenge for the month of April, 2016. My theme is Things You Can See or Experience in North San Luis Obispo County. Here are links to the other posts if you missed them.

A is for Acorn
B is for Barney Schwartz Park
C is for Cattle in Wine Country
D is for Dark Star Cellars
E is for Electric Wires
F is for Family Farms
G is for Graveyard Vineyards
H is for Horses
Insects in My Neighborhood in April
J's Burgers in Paso Robles: A Review
Kosta is God's Gift to Me from Across the Ocean
Laguna Lake is Full Again
Mission San Miguel Photos
Niner Estates Decorated Heart Hill with Vineyards
Ocean Photos from the California Central Coast

Paso Robles Police Vehicles

Related articles

• The Paso Robles Area is Where I Belong
• What I'd Miss Most If I Ever Had to Leave Paso Robles Forever
• Spring Has Sprung in Wine Country
• A Windmill on My Mind

Paso Robles City Park is Wrapped in Orange

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Tuesday I read in the Paso Robles Daily News that the bandstand/gazebo in the City Park had been attacked by termites. Even before that we had construction going on in the park. The entire 12th Street entrance walkway and landscaping has been surrounded by orange netting for months. Now with the bandstand tented and surrounded with the orange fencing, it seems as though the city park is wrapped in orange. 

The photo on the right shows part of the tented gazebo with the orange construction fence.

The photo below shows the area closest to the 12th Street entrance. This is where the fountain used to be before the drought. This shot was taken from the north, as you enter the park from Pine Street with 12th Street on the right.

The photo below shows the same dry fountain area in February 2011, surrounded by planters with flowers and shrubs. This view is what one walking  in from 12th Street, looking toward the old Carnegie Library, would have seen until recently.

The next photo shows you an overview of the orange-wrapped construction zones from a distance as one enters the park from Pine Street.  Do you see the large pine tree leaning toward the gazebo? I hope it doesn't fall on it later on. A drought often weakens the roots and the tree begins to lean before it falls. We had to take out a pine tree that did that this year, and in Templeton one of our trees did fall.

Below is a closer look at the leaning tree from the other side of the gazebo, looking toward 12th Street. I'd hate to lose it, since it's the Hospice Memorial Tree.

Below is a close-up looking up toward the sign in the Hospice Memorial Tree.

They are supposed to remove the tent from the gazebo sometime tomorrow along with the orange fence around it. I can only hope they also finish the rest of the construction before the spring festivals begin in the park. 

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Looking Back at Peachy Canyon Tasting Room, 2013

It's no secret that I think the grounds of Peachy Canyon's 46 West Tasting Room are beautiful and peaceful places to roam with my camera. It's a bit more lively inside the tasting room itself, but if you step behind the tasting room to the park-like area for picnics it is tranquil. I especially love the large oaks where I sometimes see squirrels playing. Often the winery cats will come to say hello and ask to be petted, and we all know petting a cat is calming.

Peachy Canyon Gazebo and Picnic Area, ©B. Radisavljevic,  ©B. Radisavljevic

Autumn is one of the most colorful times to visit any vineyard. I took these photos in early November, 2013. Just click on them to enlarge them.

Ripe Grapes on the Vine at Peachy Canyon,  2013,  ©B. Radisavljevic

Grape Leaves Dressed for Autumn, Peachy Canyon, 2013,  ©B. Radisavljevic

Guardian of the Vineyard, Peachy Canyon, 2013,  ©B. Radisavljevic

I'm thankful I have such a generous neighbor who allows me roaming privileges when I need to find a few minutes of peace in the midst of a hectic life. Next time you approach the corner of Bethel Road and Highway 46 West, stop in and taste some wine. Then take it out on the grounds to sip in tranquillity in the shadow of the oaks as you look out at the vines.

Friendship Card, Peach Canyon Winery Cats Greeting Card
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